Business Article - Ways to Build Good Customer Relationships
Did you know that it can cost roughly three times as much to find a new customer than it can to keep an existing one? Well it does, and that goes to show how expensive finding new customers can be. For the majority of businesses, the absolute best investment is and should be keeping all of your existing customers satisfied, instead of constantly searching out new ones. Most businesses have functional customer acquiry strategies in place, but have virtually nothing set up to keep the existing clientele happy. Below is a list of ten tips I’ve found to be successful at building loyal customers who stay, with the added perk that these 10 things cost little or nothing to emplace.
- Thank your customers as often as you can. The customer has chosen to invest his or her time and money with your establishment. The act of being grateful for their investment of time and money by saying thank you is by far one of the easiest ways build a good rapport with your customers. How you give your thanks can range from a simple thank you, to a handwritten post card, all the way to a corporate gift (depending on the client type of course). However you choose to thank your clientele, make sure it comes from the heart and is sincere.
- Make a point to learn the names of each of your customers. The single most beautiful word that a person can hear would be their very own name. Learn your customers’ name, and use it during conversation with them. This will help to make your relationship more personal, and more personable, instead of just being salesman to customer. Along the same line, anything else you can learn about the customer will help you to relate to them better, to be more personal and personable, and helps you to be less and less the salesman, and more and more the friend.
- Promise very little, and deliver a great deal more than what was expected. Quite a few businesses get caught up promising customers too much, or attracting a customer without being able to deliver on whatever promises were initially made. Under promising and over delivering can turn this all around. Instead of leaving your customers feeling far less than thrilled with your services, you can give a little bit of extra service by being realistic about your deadlines, then meeting or beating them to please your clients.
- Take stock in all of the little things that mean much more than you realize. Small gestures and simple touches truly do make a difference. For example, if you are delivering a piece of furniture to the home of one of your customers, take the time to wipe it clean afterward. When visiting a customer in his or her own home or office, strive to leave the place cleaner than when you found it to make a good impression on that client. It is little touches like these that make a true difference when it comes to building long lasting relationships with your clients and customers.
- Make a point to keep in touch with all of your customers and clients. If you typically are only contacting your customers on an annual basis, then you may find that you are not receiving the customer loyalty that you were hoping for. Find new and innovative ways to stay in touch with your customers as often as you can. The ones that you enjoy working with should hear from you often, or at least every month or so. You do not have to go out of your way to meet up with your customers, as it usually only takes a brief e-mail, a quick telephone call or a postcard in the mail to let your customers know that you have been thinking about them. All of your customers should hear from you on a fairly regular basis. You may even go so far as to figure out automated ways to reach out to your customers, such as auto responder e-mail software, or even an e-mail newsletter. These tasks can make your life a great deal easier, while still reminding your customers that you are thinking about them regularly.
- Make a point to remember any events that are significant. For example, if a client of yours is having a birthday, is getting married, or is celebrating some other significant event, then you have an extra opportunity to get a hold of him or her to let them know that you are thinking about them. Keep a file for each month where you keep track of special events like these. You can buy greeting cards in advance, then spend an afternoon once a month sending cards out to all clients who are celebrating something significant like a birthday, holiday or wedding in that month. This is a simple gesture that can go a long way when it comes to building a strong and loyal relationship with your clients.
- When problems arise, strive to solve them the first time. Complaints should actually be taken as an opportunity to show your clients and customers exactly how well you can respond to fix whatever problems have come up. Complaints tend to only actually go bad if the customer or client is ignored, or not listed to, or if they feel palmed off or like they are not being treated with respect. With any complaint lodged by a customer or client, you should make a point to listen carefully to everything without making any interruptions. Then you should make an effort to work out the problem, because losing a customer is never worth being right in an argument. Even if you feel like the customer is in the wrong, you should make a point to side with them for the sake of keeping them on board. Review your procedures and solve the problem so that the problem never crops up again. The most important thing that you can do is to tell the customer what will be done or what has been done to rectify the situation, and then apologize so that they understand you mean it.
- Know that communication is the most vital key in the process, and act on that principle. Many of the problems in businesses come from the fact that many business owners and managers are not exactly sure how to best communicate with their clients and customers. If a delivery is delayed and someone will be impacted, make a point to phone your client directly to let him or her know. If you are going to be early and someone will be impacted, contact the customer or client directly to make him or her aware. You should always keep your customers constantly informed of whatever progress or problems may be occurring at the present time. The more communication you offer, the more you will receive in return. Communication truly is a key principle when it comes to building strong and healthy customer relationships.
- Make a point to respond to any faxes, e-mails and phone calls that you receive as quickly as you can. You should aim for a 24-hour or less response on any customer correspondence. Even if you are simply sending out an e-mail message to acknowledge that you received something from the customer, this is a much better option than simply falling silent. Once the customer knows he or she can expect a reply, they can build a little bit more trust with you even if you do not respond right away.
- Smile, and strive to be friendly with your customers at all times. When a business owner genuinely cares about his or her customers, then these pleasant thoughts will shine through. Skills can easily be taught to most, but attitude cannot be taught as easily. You should always look for happy employee candidates who appear to genuinely care about your customers and their individual needs. These are the employees who will become the greatest of all assets for your company. Your customer will pick up on these good energies, and it will help to build healthy relationships with them over time. If you consistently project an attitude that leads your customers to feel like they are burdening you, they will likely look elsewhere for a business to build a strong working relationship with.
Building strong, healthy customer relationships is not a difficult task by any means. If you care about your customers and want to continue working with them, those energies will be felt and more than likely shared by your clients. Make a point to communicate with your customers and they will put effort into returning that communication. Communication, good listening and resolution skills, and friendly attitude is really all it takes to build a great relationship with each and every customer that you deal with on a daily basis.